, 1887-12-09
COPPER CREEPING UP.
German and French Syndicates Are
Heavy Buyers.
Fire in the Calumet and HecIa Mines
Cause An Advance.
The Urgent Necessity of Developing
Wyoming Copper Fields.

At no period in the history of the ter
ritory has the outlook for the vast copper
interests of Wyoming been more encour-
aging.
Every existing circumstance points
conclusively to Wyoming as a future i'm.
portantifactor in the copper traffic of the
world.
Events of the past few days, coupled
with incidents of remoter date, warrant
the assertion that the copper deposits of
Wyoming will receive the attention of
capitalists within the ensuing ninety
days.
Some three months since the copper
pit of the New York exchange was almost
untenanted. Traders would not condo.
scend to deal in the base metal, and COP
per options were the playthings of brokers
clerks.
One day there was a furry in this in
significant corner of the great mart. Cop
per leaped from 9 cents to ID, while deal
ers were bemoaning the dullness of the
market. The move was noted by many
shrewd manipulators, and hundreds dis
posed of grain and pork holdings and
fluctuating railroad stocks to invest in
copper, an unpretentious, but staple pro
duce always marketable.
The reason for this change ere soon
learned by those who did not have valu-
able information of this sort flashed to
them over private wires. A remorseless
confagration was raging in the famous
Calumet and Hecla mines, of the Lake
Superior copper district.
Realizing that a few reliable figures
would greatly facilitate the treatment of
the subject in hand, a LEADER repre-
sentative last evening sought out Prof.
Ricketts,, territorial geologlst, and with
his aid gathered the appended valuable
data in relation to copper:
In 1885, So 900 tons of copper were pro.
duced in the United States, or one-third
of the entire output of the copper dis
tricts of the world. OF this amount
$4,000 tons was mined in the noted Lake
Superior district, aud % 1000 tons from
the famous Calumet and Hecla mines
alone.
For the past three months supehuman
efforts have been made to quench the
flames which are involving in ruin the
wealthy Lake Superior Copper company.
Every method known to science has been
unsuccessfully applied. But one a%lterna-
tive remains. The mines must be
flooded. This procedure will necessitate
the expenditure of enormous sums of
money, but this outlay will be a mere
bagatelle in comparison with the amount
necessary to once more place these claims
in working condition. With the burning
tinbers supporting thousands of acres
comes the caving in of millions of tons of
earth. The most vigorous prosecution
task cannot of this prodigious
insure its completion ere the lapse of two
and perhaps three years. The metal it.
self cannot be ignited. Being native cop,
per it contains but little sulphur.
Upon learning this cheering news the
minds of the sanguine Cheyenne man at
once reverts to the two copper districts of
Laramie county-the contiguous camp of
Silver Crown and the more distant, but
richer Hartville. 1t is morally certain
that the latter camp will boom in the early
spring if not sooner. THE LEADER has
the assurance of most trustworthy gentle
men in a position to know, that negoria-
tions in regard to the re opening of the
smelter at once are pending even now.
As for Silver Crown, she can speak for
herself. But for most unfortunate occur
rences entirely beyond the control of in
terestcd parties, the smelter would to day
be treating the rich ores of the district.
As it is, mine owners have received fat
tering offers to ship their ore to the Belle
vile, Ill.,, smelter OF Messrs. Black &
Lewis. The senior member of the firm
inspected several OF the claims Wednes-
day, and is highly pleased with the ap-
pearance OF the camp.
In the meantime copper is steadily ad-
vancing. German and French syndicates
are the heaviest purchasers. Closing
quotations yesterday placed copper at II
cents and deplored its scarcity.
Where the advance will cease no one
can assume to predict, suffice it to say
that the calamity which overlook the
Lake Superior company is the most for
tunate thing for Wyoming which has oc-
CURED since the organization of the terri
tnru